A nine-member federal jury Thursday found that two police officers were not liable for false arrest and malicious prosecution, as a man had claimed in a lawsuit stemming from his 1997 arrest at the Laurel Woods Nursing Home on North High Street, where his grandmother had been an Alzheimer's patient.
The jury in U.S. District Court in Hartford, in finding that Officers Michael D'Amato and John Casio were not liable, awarded nothing to plaintiff Randall Holman of Washington Depot in the town of Washington, said attorney Hugh F. Keefe of Lynch Traub Keefe & Errante in New Haven, who represented East Haven in the case, which was heard by U.S. District Judge Christopher Droney.
France Holman was represented by attorney Joseph Merly of the New Haven law firm of John R. Williams and Associates. Merly could not immediately be reached for comment. Holman filed suit after charges of interfering with police, trespassing and breach of peace that stemmed from his arrest were nolled in Superior Court in New Haven, Keefe said.
According to Keefe, Holman was visiting his grandmother, Dorothy Press, in October 1997, two days after he had tried to make arrangements to take her to the Foxwoods Resort Casino. Nursing home staff had told Holman he could not take his grandmother out because she had treatment scheduled for that day, but he showed up and demanded that staff release her, Keefe said.
jewelry-bThe conflict continued to a point where Laurel Woods staff told Holman he had to leave and called police, who are located just a few hundred yards away from the nursing home on North High Street.
D'Amato and Casio responded "and spent 30 minutes trying to cajole him and coax him and defuse the situation," Keefe said. "He still refused to go. He wrapped his hands around the pole, fell to the ground," and the officers "ended up Macing him, handcuffing him and carrying him out to the police car."
Holman's wife testified in court that she and their then-2-year- old son also were sprayed with Mace, Keefe said.
The trial began Monday, Keefe said, and Thursday the case went to the jury of two men and seven women, which took about three hours to reach a verdict, he said.
cheap abercrombieMark Zaretsky can be reached at or 789- 5722.
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